The enemy also ... Also another thing that, another tactic of the serpent,
and several ones, several vipers, pythons, they tempt by wiggling their, their tail
that it looks like a worm. It's a different color. Looks like a worm.
A lizard, a frog sees it, hungry, approaches. It's being lured
to the tail and then comes the strike of the mouth. The enemy lures, he lures you
for the sake of, of destroying you. Using bait.
So what, using the pleasure principle. What does a duck hunter use to get ducks?
That call. Duck call. Now to you it sounds it's a duck call ...
But to the duck, to a duck what they're hearing is, Hi Handsome, I want to talk to you.
Call me. Just dial 1-800 Quack.
That's what it is. It's a mating call! So, so the hunter uses desire to destroy,
to kill the prey. The enemy uses the same thing. What desire do you have that is
not submitted to God? Even it could be a desire for a good thing but if it's not
submitted to God the enemy can use it. Desire for marriage. Marriage is a good thing.
But if that becomes your consuming thing above the will of God the enemy
can use it. Get you married to the wrong person. Or whatever it is. Pursuit.
Jealousy. Doesn't matter ... greed, lust, obviously. You become subject
to the enemy's crippling. Many people have been crippled because of that. It's that,
that serpent. The tail. He will al ... watch your desires. Desire for success,
for money, for those things. Fame. Be careful. Watch. A, a desire that is not surrendered
to God. Be honest to God about it. Lift it up. Say, Lord I am whatever you want.
I'm going to, I submit to it. And that's okay, that's how you cover it. David, man after
God's heart. And yet one day he's looking and he sees Bathsheba. And the enemy knew it.
It was an opening right there and it, it totally, it, it, look what it did to his life.
And these people of God, ministers to God ... fall in
sexual sin. And it's not that they didn't love God. They may have loved God totally.
But there was an opening. That's the whole point. But when you lift it up,
watch your desires, you get this ... you know Paul said, I beat my body daily.
I, I submit myself. When you get this under submission
and then you have disarmed the enemy's tactic. When you find yourself being
tempted, at that moment see through it. See it for what it is.
It is not joy. You know it's promising you joy. But you've got to say no. Let me
look beyond it. Where am I going to be tomorrow morning? How am I going to feel
about it if I give in to that? How am I going to feel ten years from now if I keep
on giving in to it? Look at the pain of it. It's a good thing. Look at the pain.
You're being tempted by alcohol? Look at all the pain and destruction.
That'll keep you from doing it. You're being tempted by adultery? Look at all
the destruction that's coming on the other side. See through that ser ... it's just
a serpent's tail. See through it. And, and connect it. See it for what it is and you
will not be tempted. The more pain you see the more you're going to avoid it and
... and there's another, one other strategy here. Very effective. Since
the enemy uses desire, wants, unmet needs, and longings to lead you off, the most
effective way in dealing with it is to get into the practice of, strength and
get real strong in the joy of the Lord. The joy of God. Practice the fullness
of God. Filling yourself up. Rejoicing in. You know ... why did, why did man fall
in the first place? Because those two in the garden did not fill themselves up with
the blessings of God. And instead of looking at the blessings of God they
looked at the one thing they didn't have. That they didn't need. An unmet need
in your life the enemy is going go for. An unmet need. Why did Sarah and Abraham
fall in, fall when they fell. Because Sarah had a need she wasn't bringing to God and
she didn't trust God to answer her the need. Why did David fall? Same way.
You know God told him that much. He said you know I would have blessed you. I would have
given, I would have blessed you but you went this own way. You didn't think
I would bless you. You put in an empty cup in a dirty pond that empty cup is going to
get filled up right away. You put a pipe that's flowing out with water, clean
water into that pond, that pipe is not going to be touched by it. The ...
the unclean can't come in. A full overflowing cup is not going to be touched
by impurity. So with spiritual warfare. If you go into it empty you're not going
to win. You go into it full you prevail. I've shared this and you know this
and it happened to me. You go into a supermarket and you are starving you are
done for. Because you'll be attracted to everything that's bad, that's fattening,
that's no good for you, that you don't need, that's not even that good tasting,
you're gonna be attracted. But go into it, fill yourself up, go into the supermarket.
There's some of you here who I meet in supermarkets. I'm not gonna go into that.
But you go ... I've got to watch that, because if ... you see me with Doritos
see you've got to stop me. But you go into a supermarket you fill yourself up you can
walk right into all those sweets you're not going to feel anything.
So it is with the enemy. You want to resist temptation? Best thing aside from
avoiding that thing and closing it off and staying away from it in every way
is to fill yourself up with the things of God. Blessings of God. The love of God.
The joy of God. The, the, the Spirit of God. All the things of God. All the blessings he's
given you. Rejoice in it. Husbands, rejoice in the wife of your youth.
Wives, rejoice in the husband of your youth. And rejoice in all the blessings
of God you have. And ... it's a double win because it feels good
and it's good for you. The joy of the Lord. To find out how you can receive
more of Jonathan's teachings, to receive special free gifts or get in touch, go to
Hopeoftheworld.org or call toll-free 1 (800) YESHUA-1. That's
Hopeoftheworld.org or call 1 (800) YESHUA-1. That's 1 (800) 937-4821.
You can also get more at Jonathan Cahn's Facebook page,
or write us direct at Hope of the World, Box 1111, Lodi, New Jersey 07644-USA.
Hope of the World is dedicated to the goal
of spreading God's Word and salvation to every land and people. We do this by
spreading the Word throughout the world and sponsoring compassion projects
to the most poor and needy around the earth. To get in touch or have
a part in God's work, just write to Hope of the World, Box 1111,
Lodi, New Jersey 07644-USA, or go to Hopeoftheworld.org,
or call 1 (800) YESHUA-1. That's 1 (800) 937-4821.